Agram Group Build Project #1 (part 3)
Marko Paunović, 30th September 2021
MARKO: For this meeting, only I had homework, and that was to include all the agreed changes in the draft, which I did and brought a couple of printed copies of the new draft. Each time we meet, we analyze the design a little and add new details. At this stage, this is important because a good design will result in a quality mould for casting walls that must have well-designed holes for windows and doors to make our job easier after casting, and before adding all the details. Of the changes I made, the most important was to reduce the width of the platform for the entrance to the butcher's shop so that a garbage container would fit next to it and the right wall. I also designed a walkway between the left and right buildings so that the ventilation pipes fit. Also, elements of window panes that Kruno drew last time have been added.
DOMAGOJ: First of all, I would like to thank Agram for organizing the MPC competition where I won a greenstuffing workshop with my mentor Ana Polanščak.
In this series of articles, we will follow our Goran, Kruno and Marko in the making of a diorama set in New York / Gotham in the mid-1980s. Diorama is being built as part of a new UMS "Agram" project called Agram Group Build, which was created after the trio discussed joint projects to be done on Wednesdays and how cool it would be to gather more people to work on something together… This gave birth to the idea of Group Builds... The idea is for everyone to do something on each of these three projects - the main rule (except that there are no rules) is not to mess with other people's work. That we all participate and make some kind of Frankenstein monster ...
MARKO: For this meeting, only I had homework, and that was to include all the agreed changes in the draft, which I did and brought a couple of printed copies of the new draft. Each time we meet, we analyze the design a little and add new details. At this stage, this is important because a good design will result in a quality mould for casting walls that must have well-designed holes for windows and doors to make our job easier after casting, and before adding all the details. Of the changes I made, the most important was to reduce the width of the platform for the entrance to the butcher's shop so that a garbage container would fit next to it and the right wall. I also designed a walkway between the left and right buildings so that the ventilation pipes fit. Also, elements of window panes that Kruno drew last time have been added.
And then we persuaded a new member of the group, Dalibor, to continue building trash cans and gas bottles, and we turned to Ana's lecture on sculpting, which Domagoj won at the last competition of the Miniature Painters Croatia group.
DOMAGOJ: First of all, I would like to thank Agram for organizing the MPC competition where I won a greenstuffing workshop with my mentor Ana Polanščak.
The first topic we went through at the workshop was blending parts of the miniatures with greenstuff. During conversions, we often have holes and gaps that we fill with greenstuff. It is important to blend the joint well, most simply by using a lubricated silicone brush, so that the transition is imperceptible. On my first conversion, I had difficulty drawing textures, such as the edge on armor, textiles, etc., and Ana demonstrated to me how I can easily get the desired effect with a metal tool from the image.
We used the same tool for modeling belts and belt buckles. With a thin and long strip of greenstuff, we placed the belt in the desired position, and we straightened it and removed the excess material with a metal tool. When we were happy with the belt, we let it harden, and then added a small amount of greenstuff to it. With a metal tool, we leveled and shaped the additional material into a rectangle, and carefully drew and shaped the inside of the buckle.
Impressed by the results provided by the metal tool, I asked Ana how we can model simple objects. I was interested in how to make simple handbags, and Ana showed me how to make rectangular handbags, like compartments on a bandolier. Unlike the straps, which we shape on the figurine, these bags are modeled on the desktop. After obtaining a rectangular shape, we cut a line that separates the lid from the base of the bag. We make a slight indentation on the lid and add a very small amount of material, to simulate the shots held by the lid and the pressure it creates on the lid of the bag.
Round bags, pouches, are modeled on the figure itself. We start with the basic form by preparing the material into a teardrop shape. When we set the bag in the desired position, we do the separation of the upper and lower part of the bag, to simulate the place where the bag is attached to the figure. Using this location as a reference, we draw and shape the folds and creases in the material, which are narrowest at the site of fixation, and widest at the ends of the bag. We carefully flatten the bag itself, in order to get the effect of tightening it to the body. The upper part of the bag, on which the opening is, is also shaped. We can draw the opening so that it looks like the opening of the bag is outwards, or we can draw the folds to let it be known that this part of the material is not as taut as the lower part of the bag. Finally, we can add a greenstuff to model the rope or strap that holds the bag in place.
Ana's instructions were very useful and I hope to try modeling on my own as soon as possible.
Feel free to contact us here if you are interested! We are every Wednesday from 8 pm to 10 pm in KD ZZTK on Trg žrtava fašizma 14.
Latest articles
- We visited: MOSONSHOW 2025 Marko Paunović, 5th May 2025
- March to Hren28 week 5 Mario Grgurev, 5th May 2025
- AGRAM LEGO SECTION - Orient Express: Third Lecture and continuation of the build Marko Paunović, 5th May 2025
- AGRAM LEGO SECTION - Orient Express: Second Lecture and continuation of the build Marko Paunović, 24th April 2025
- March to Hren28 week 4 Mario Grgurev, 24th April 2025
Latest battle-reports
- Kill Team - Blooded vs. Vespid Stingwings 28th February 2025, GW - Warhammer 40.000, and Antoni Pastuović (Imperial Guard)
- 22nd April 2022, GW - Warhammer 40.000, Borna Pleše (Space Marines) and Kristijan Kliska (Tau Empire)
- 17th November 2021, GW - Warhammer 40.000, and Nino Marasović (Space Marines)